Cyclone Arnab Toll Rises to Five in Andhra Pradesh as Storm Moves Toward Odisha

UPDATE - follow-up to Cyclone 'Arnab' LIVE updates | Three killed in Andhra after landfall near Narsapur; storm weakens: Cyclone Arnab has weakened from a very severe to a severe cyclonic storm after crossing the Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coasts.

Casualties And Relief

Five people have died in cyclone-related incidents across Andhra Pradesh. Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu announced that the families of the victims will receive five lakh rupees each. About 57,000 people have been moved to relief camps by the National Disaster Response Force. People in relief camps will receive one thousand rupees each, up to three thousand rupees per family. Families whose houses were flooded will get 25 kg of rice, or 50 kg for fishermen and handloom weavers, along with essential food items. Owners of partly damaged houses will get 10,000 rupees, while affected farmers will get 25,000 rupees a hectare for crops like paddy, cotton, groundnut, and sugarcane.

Damage And Restoration

The storm cut power to over 25 lakh connections in north and central Andhra, damaging thousands of electric poles and hundreds of transformers. A total of 38 flights were cancelled at the Visakhapatnam airport and 17 services at Vijayawada. Paddy on about 70,900 hectares and horticulture crops on 10,450 hectares are under water or damaged, with about 180 houses hit. Chief Minister Naidu has written to Union Home Minister Amit Shah seeking a Central team to assess the damage. Meanwhile, the Telangana government stated it will extend full support to Andhra Pradesh in restoration works, with Telangana Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka speaking to Andhra Pradesh Energy Minister G Ravi Kumar over the phone.

Spread To Other States

Seventeen districts of Odisha have been affected by heavy rainfall triggered by the storm, with Gajapati worst hit. Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi stated his state is prepared to deal with any eventuality as heavy rain is forecast to continue. The storm now heads for Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, and West Bengal, where heavy rain is expected.

Context

Tropical cyclones in the Bay of Bengal frequently intensify during the post-monsoon season, bringing destructive winds, heavy rainfall, and widespread infrastructure damage to India's eastern coastline. State disaster management authorities and agencies like the National Disaster Response Force routinely coordinate mass evacuations and relief operations to minimize casualties during such extreme weather events.